Joe Ajaero, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has stated that the union would not bow to external pressures after he visited the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Police headquarters in Abuja.
Ajaero visited the IRT office and departed shortly. During his visit, he addressed allegations of terrorism financing, cybercrime, subversion, criminal conspiracy, and treasonable felony.
Speaking to journalists at Labour House after his visit, Ajaero emphasized the NLC’s unwavering commitment to defending Nigerian workers’ rights and described the allegations as baseless.
He said: “We can’t be intimidated. The allegations against us are baseless, and we have nothing to hide.”
He reflected on the historical challenges encountered by labour leaders and said: “You can’t do this job we’re doing without this type of hazard. Even at the unit level, some of us experienced it, as far back as 1997/1998 with Femi Falana, we were equally together in the cell during the time of Abacha… but whatever the case is, we’re out to continue the struggle, we’ve gotten minimum wage but we can’t be intimidated, we have to press for its implementation as soon as possible.”
He made it known that the NLC would remain actively involved in initiatives to improve workers’ welfare. He said: “Every other thing that will make the welfare of the Nigerian workers worthwhile, we will be involved in it.”
Ajaero described his appearance before the police as a measure of transparency to tackle the baseless accusations and reaffirmed the determination of the union to advocate for workers’ rights despite the allegations, which according to him were aimed at undermining the labor movement.
He said: “Our resolve is stronger than ever. We will continue to champion the cause of workers across the nation, no matter the obstacles.”
Ajaero’s visit to the IRT headquarters followed a previous invitation on August 20, which he could not attend as he had other engagements.
